The Stolls Origin
by MyLifeIsALie
Summary: We all know Travis and Connor Stoll as the pranking duo who always finds a shady way to welcome the new kids. But the Stolls were the new kids once too. This is the origin of the two boys and how the Stolls we all know and love came to be. /Travis centered. Slight Tratie/


It started off a pretty normal day. You know, up until our principle turned into a giant fleshy monster and tried to kill us. And now here I am, dragging my little brother through the woods as our classmate stands up ahead yelling in some sort of crazy language. Did I mention he has goat legs? I didn't? Well, our classmate has goat legs. Oh yeah, and he's yelling at us because, yet again, a monster is trying to kill us.

Yes, yes, this is very confusing. I guess I'll just start from the beginning.

xxx

I stood at the end of the hall waiting for my younger brother Connor to hurry up so we could go home. I leaned against the wall watching the other kids walk by. Many of them-scratch that- _all_ of them had their back packs on and things in their pockets, things I could so easily steal. Stealing has always been like second nature for me, even if has gotten me in trouble a few times. Only a _few times_ though. My brother and I hardly ever get caught.

After about another minute, I was very tempted to just leave Connor behind. He was smart he could make it home, right? It was just my luck I saw him coming around the corner, otherwise I would have to explain to my mom why my lil' bro wasn't with me.

He walked next to another boy with baggy jeans and curly dirty-blond hair. The kid walked kind of weird, like, with a limp. I watched as my brother draped an arm around his shoulder. The kid seemed to tense, but tried to continue the conversation with Connor. After nearing closer to me my brother quickly retreated his hands to his pocket and grinned a goodbye at the kid.

"What ya get?" I whispered and leaned closer him.

He pulled his hands out of his pocket and held out his palms. "Some candy and a couple quarters." He popped a green jaw breaker in his mouth and stuck out his tongue. "Ew! What kind of candy does Harper eat?!"

I scrunched up my eyebrows and shoved one in my mouth too. He was right, it tasted like dirt and grass. After wiping my tongue on my sleeve I asked, "Who's Harper?"

My kid brother shoved the loot in his back pack and nearly shouted, "The kid I stole it from!" I threw a hand over his mouth, and he quickly placed his hand over my hand. We glanced around thoroughly and it seemed like no one noticed. That is, until my eyes fell on Harper at the end of the hallway looking directly at us. He wasn't being very subtle either, especially since he was wearing a big puffy camouflage coat. It wasn't even cold outside!

The hall was almost empty, so I took my hand off Connors's mouth and pushed him along. "Go bro."

We sped walked toward the door and got outside, just as Harper started limping toward us yelling Connor's name.

We were walking through the front of the school yard when Connor turned to me and said, "I'm hungry."

I shrugged. "Me too. Wanna raid the candy store or something?"

My curly haired doppelganger looked as if he was about to say something, but a loud voice cut him off. "TRAVIS AND CONNOR STOLL!" We both turned our heads toward the front of the school. Our principle, Mr. Stein, stood there. The sun reflected off his balding head and it looked as if he spilled coffee on his suit again (compliment of the Stolls of course). He stuck out his big bony finger and motioned for us to come over.

Most of the kids surrounding us sent smug looks our way, as if they knew we did something and we deserved punishment. Kids here didn't like us too much, and I can't say I blame them. Most of them are victims of mine and my brothers devious pranks. In fact, I took pride in how many people despised. Means I did something right.

I exchange a glance with Connor, already considering running away. And by the look on his face, I could tell Connor was thinking the same thing. As if he could read our minds, Mr. Stein bellowed "If you run I'm expelling you!"

We groaned simultaneously and trudged toward him. Not the first time the old bat threaten to expel us.

He met us at the door and placed a hand on each of our shoulders. He steered us toward his office of West Bridge Elementary, as I tried shrugging his hand off my shoulder. It was cold and sent a sting up my neck.

I noticed Connor sending me funny looks with his eyes. I raised my eyebrows at him and he mouthed something like _'What about his shoes?'_. I glanced at Stein's shoes. Nothing seemed to be wrong with them, so I waved off Connor's stupid comment. Now was not the time to be worrying about an irritating principle's shoes.

He sat us down on the chairs in front of his desk. The cushions were nice and soft on my butt. I was quite familiar with those chairs. Mr. Stein stood in the doorway for a few moments, staring us down, before turning around and walking out.

I elbowed Connor. His curly brown hair was falling in his eyes, and I self consciously knocked some off of my own face. We definitely needed a haircut. "What did we do?"

Connor shrugged and raised his eyebrows. "I dunno. That's what I was asking you!"

I cocked my head. That made a lot more sense then 'what about his shoes?'. "Well, I did stick some gum in that cute ginger girl's hair."

Connor pretended to gag on something. I know he didn't like that cute ginger girl. "And I put a bunch of fake bugs on the lunch trays." He added.

When I grinned, he grinned, and didn't hesitate to give him a high five. ''Nice one." I said.

The two of us continued going back and forth, sharing stories on the trouble we caused today at school. But I was still wondering where Principle Stein was. For as many times as we have been sent to the principle's office, he has never left us alone. _Never._ In fear of us vandalizing his desk or something.

He rarely ever called our mother either. He would give us long lectures in his creepy monotone voice and make us do class chores. He was always hovering around, creeping his head over our shoulders, but he never once called our mother. Then again, our mother rarely touched us at home. She would cook our meals and make our beds, but she seemed to keep her distance. I could see the look of suspicion in her eye, like she feared if she got to close to us we would bite her or something.

Which I can't say wouldn't happen. I'd seen Connor bite a few people in my day.

When Principle Stein came back in, his skin looked a shade pinker. As if he was rolling in bubblegum and it got stuck to his flesh. He slowly walked to his desk and both Connor and I huffed in annoyance. I held up a hand and started, "Look, Mr. Stink-!"

"Stein!" He snarled. Seriously, some people get offended way too easily.

"Stein." I rolled my eyes. "We didn't do anything. So we can just go home right?" I knew for a fact we did a lot of things, but I thought maybe if I didn't act guilty, he wouldn't hold us to the consequences.

"Yeah." Connor chimed in. "We just want some candy. Some that doesn't taste like grass and dirt."

Mr. Stein pursed his lips and seemed to consider this. He reached into his drawer and pulled out a handful of red candies. At first glance they could be jelly beans. But as I looked closer, they had little neon yellow stripes and steam appeared to be coming off them.

"No." Connor shook his head. I looked at him in agreement. Most older brothers would have to make the smart decisions for their younger siblings. But one of the rules of being a good thief was to _always know the quality of items_. And I had to give my kid brother some credit, he was a pretty darn good thief.

Stein narrowed his eyes and lowered the candy onto his desk.

"Anyway, about leaving-!"

"Travis Stoll." His raspy voice cut me off again. "You are here because you left all the faucets running and clogged all the toilets in both the boys and _girls_ bathroom!"

My partner in crime turned to me and I shot him a smirk. "Okay. Guilty." I admitted.

"And you!" He shot a dark glare at Connor who sat up straighter in his seat. The thing about the two of us, we don't shy away when people speak of our doings. No matter how off color they are-we are proud of everything we do. "You painted all the third grade teacher's-including your own teacher's- whiteboards green!''

Connor and I broke into fits of laughter as Stein rose form his seat. "Destruction of property!" He spat, his voice getting raspier by the second. We both looked up at about the same time. The laughing stopped immediately. Our principle wasn't there anymore-well actually, he _was_ still there. But it sure as heck didn't look like him. He was now so tall he almost touched the ceiling, and his skin was now a dark cherry color. His eyes glowed yellow, and when he spoke, he had two tongues hanging out of his mouth.

Though I was terrified for my life, I heard myself say, "Wow Mr. Stein. That look really suits you."

Knowing Connor, he probably would have laughed. That is, if there weren't sparks coming out of our principle's ears.

"You will learn respect!" He hissed, stomping his foot on his wooden desk. It instantly erupted in flames.

I jumped in front of my little brother and shielded him from the smoke and debris flying all over the place. We backed toward the wall. "Travis! What do we do?" Connor cried. I could hear the quivering in his voice and my heart dropped. My brother always looked to me, and I had no idea what to do right now.

"You demigods always make everything so difficult!" Stein roared.

I still wasn't sure why he called us 'demigods', but my instincts told me to reach into my back pack. When I did, I checked every pouch and opening until I was satisfied with what I found. After discarding a couple dollars, a rubber chicken, and a screw driver, I pulled out a lighter.

Sure, having a lighter in school could get me expelled. But that never stopped me. I didn't know what made this lighter so special _but something did_. Maybe it was the fact that Connor had one exactly like it too. Or maybe, it had something to do with how the UPS guy delivered them to our house with no return address. Connor had opened the door, where the UPS guy gave him an ''intense'' look and handed him the box. Our mother then snatched the box from Connor's grasp and slammed the door on the UPS man's face. She then said to _never_ touch the lighters inside.

Like that would stop us.

It was a good thing it didn't too, otherwise we would be dead. Because about two seconds after I held down the button, a twelve inch blade shot out of it. It was now a silver sword that fit perfectly in my hand.

Not knowing what to do, I simply held the sword out. And like the idiot he was, Stein sprang forward getting impaled in the process.

A crackling sound, like pop rocks on your tongue, started spewing from his mouth. I was breathing heavily and trying my best to not inhale smoke. I glanced at my brother who was wide eyed in shock. He too had his lighter in his hand, but he didn't dare light a flame.

Stein didn't sound dead. So I grabbed Connor's arm and pulled him to his feet. I glanced at the sword in my hand and brushed my finger over the bottom of the blade. It immediate turned back into a lighter.

I looked at Connor who had tears running down his cheeks. I, too, feel them welling up in my eyes. With a sniffle and glance at our ex-principle, I pushed him toward the door. "Run Connor!"

We ran out the front doors of the school which was now deserted. The sky was overcast and I saw a few raindrops. We didn't dare stop running. I held tightly onto Connors hand and pulled him toward our apartment building. Once we were safely inside, we collapsed in front of our door.

We sat there breathing heavily, just staring at the refrigerator. Even after all that I was still starving. Within thirty seconds I heard our mothers voice say, "Connor? Travis?" She sounded shaky and scared. This time, my brother was on his feet first. For as distant as our mother was, Connor was always a mamma's boy.

"Mom?" He sniffled and peeked around the corner into the living room. I followed him when he gasped. In our living room sat Harper our classmate, sipping tea across from out mother.

I put a hand on Connor's shoulder. "W-what are you doing here?" I asked.

Harper's ears seemed to perk up a bit and he shared a glance with my mom. "What took so long?" My mother cried.

Connor held his hands behind his back. "You wouldn't believe us." No one ever did.

Harper set his tea on the coffee table and stood. He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "Try me." He looked much more aggressive then I remembered him being in the hallway earlier.

So both me and Connor sat down next to our mom on the couch. She tensed up and looked really uncomfortable, so we transitioned to the floor. We explained what happened, minus the parts about the toilets and whiteboards. We explained the stabbing Stein situation, and I pulled out my lighter to show Harper.

My mother gasped. "Travis! I told you guys to _never_ touch those!" She glared at me.

I threw my face in my hands. "I know! I know! It's just that-!"

"It's a darn good thing they did!" Harper cut in. Until today, I never knew Harper. But by the way Connor was raising his eyebrows, I was assuming that Harper wasn't usually so outspoken. "I'm sorry Ms. Stoll," he continued. "But if they didn't, they would have died! They need to leave for camp with me _right now!_ "

Connor gripped the couch cushions. "Camp? What camp? I didn't sign up for any camp!"

I sat up on my knees. "Is it a camp for bad kids? I promise I'll be good!" I knew that wasn't true. But I was so scared right now, I would agree to anything for everything to go back to normal.

My mothers eyes softened and filled with tears. She started to move around in her seat, and for a minute, I thought she might hug us. But unsurprisingly, she got off the couch and backed up toward her room. Like if she hugged her own sons, her arm would burn off or something. "Harper.. you're right." She looked at me and my brother. "I have your bags packed already. They're in your rooms. I-I love you.'' She then closed her bedroom door and disappeared like she always does.

Connor and I merely sat in place for a few moments, just staring at the door. What just happened? Did our mom literally just give us away?

Harper dusted off his pants. "Yeah, this is always the hard part." He sat down next to us and began untying his shoe. "Ew bro." Connor sniffled and pushed the curly haired weirdo away. "Don't take your shoes off.''

Harper continued untying them anyways. I didn't know why he was doing it, but I was extremely surprised when instead of having a foot, he had a _hoof_. "HOLY COW!" I shouted jumping onto my feet and cowering behind Connor.

Harper huffed in frustration and pulled off his other shoe. "Goat."

"Goat?"

"Yeah. I'm part goat. Not cow." He rolled his eyes and looked genuinely offended. Like most people have _goat_ feet or something.

Connor was standing too and gripping my arm. "What are you?"

Harper followed our lead by standing and was now stretching his legs. "You literally just explained how you killed your lunatic principle and _I'm_ the one you're asking about?" When the two of us stared at him expectantly he picked his backpack off the floor. "I'm a satyr. Half-man half-goat." He glanced at our mom's bedroom and said, "Do you know anything about Greek mythology?"

Connor and I shrugged. "Wasn't there some wine dude?" Connor cocked his head.

"Don't think Mr. D would like to hear that.." I heard Harper mutter under his breath.

I shook my head and held up my hands. "What?"

Harper slipped his shoes back on and pointed at the room I shared with Connor. "We have to leave right _now_. Go grab your stuff, I'll explain on the way.''

xxx

The truth was, Harper did not explain on the way. We were very confused and asked him tons of questions, but he just tuned us out and would talk over us with facts on how to make good vegetarian burgers. He did tell us we had to get to New York, and we lived in Colorado. Now, I'm not very good at geography, but I know that would take us quite a while. It was a pretty smooth trip. We didn't really run into many monsters. The biggest struggle was being a good older brother.

One of the nights we were camping out in the back of a moving truck, and I could here a whimpering sound. Harper was fast asleep so I knew it could only be my brother. I leaned over and wrapped an arm around him. "Hey Con-man. You okay?"

He rubbed his eyes. "I can't sleep." he said. "Nightmares.''

I nodded my head and pulled him tighter. "You know we'll be okay right?" Even saying it out loud didn't reassure me.

Connor sat up and pulled me up with him. "But it's all so weird. Why are we so special? Where are we going? Are we gonna die? Besides, Harper is acting so different. He's not the annoying little wimp I used to steal from. Now he's an annoying know-it-all donkey."

"Goat." I heard Harper correct with a snore.

Connor wiped his nose with his sleeve and sighed. "I miss mom too. It's like...she gave us away. She didn't even say goodbye."

I pulled my knees up under my chin. ''Who needs her anyway Con? She never respected your talent of picking locks."

Connor played with his shoe lace, but I saw a smile twitch at his lips. ''Or your humor."

Harper sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Can you guys bond later? You're ruining my dream about grass candy!" And with that, he turned back over and went to sleep.

Me and my brother managed a chuckled before laying back down, my arm still draped over his shoulder.

It was a few more days before we made it to Long Island, and thankfully we made it there with no monster attacks. Harper kept us going at a fast pace though, claiming he could ''smell'' them. I dunno. He is such a weird kid. Maybe it something to do with being part goat.

Anyways, things were looking great until we got to the woods. We were near a very deserted looking area and apparently we had to cross through the forest to get to the camp entrance. Whatever that meant. It was dark and spooky, so of course that's when things decide to take a turn right?

xxx

So here I am, dragging Connor by the arm as he struggles to pull his lighter out out of his pocket. I'm sure if it comes down to it, he'll click the button and fight whatever monster was chasing us right now. But I sure as heck didn't want to take those chances.

Harper was a good seven feet in front of us. He was yelling encouraging things to get us go faster. It wasn't helping much, because within a few seconds, I felt a tug on the bag of my shirt and my feet lifted off the ground. Connor stopped in his tracks and turned around. "Travis!"

He held his thumb down on the trigger and a blade identical to mine shot out. It was weird how natural that came for him. He ran at the monster against my protests. He stabbed and slashed at it's feet as I struggled to wiggled free. It was not easy.

From a few feet ahead, I saw Harper digging through his backpack. I was tempted to shout curse words at him when he pulled out a little instrument and began playing. The creature immediately dropped me and covered it's ears, falling to it's knees. I was pretty confused but I didn't complain, though I was pretty sure the fall would kill me.

I hit the non cushioned ground with a thud. I just fell about fifteen feet, and have no idea how I'm still alive. I rolled into a little ball when Connor ran to my aid. "Trav! Are you ok?"

I gave him the 'ok' sign with my hand and tried for a grin. "Great."

Harper wasn't playing his dorky instrument anymore, so I knew it would only be a matter of time before the monster was up and running again. "Come on." I manged to get on my feet and we ran as quick as we could.

This time as we made our way to the entrance, smaller viscous looking creatures surrounded us. They looked more like wolves than anything;sharp teeth with drool pooling down their faces. I pulled out my sword and held it out. If one of them jumped at us, I would just stab it like I did to Stein. Connor must have been thinking the same thing because when one leaped at him, he held out his sword like I had not very confidently. Unfortunately, the wolf-thingys were smarter than our principle. It dodged the sword and came down on Connor.

It was about three seconds before rage boiled and I tackled the animal off him. It rolled on top of me and pinned me down until it's red eyes were staring down at me. It's teeth found my shoulder, and before I decided to call it day and let it kill me, I swung my sword over the back of my offender. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but it made the cut. The wolf-thingy let out a howl and toppled over. Connor lay on the ground helpless, swinging his sword aimlessly.

And it shames me to say we would have died if it wasn't for Harper.

Once again he pulled out his dumb instrument. He really sucked. It literally sounded like a cat dying. But either way, the monsters cringed and looked as if they were trying to cover their ears. More howls of pain echoed through the forest. I crawled toward Connor ad Harper came toward us and whispered in between breaths, "Barrier...right...there...go!"

My shoulder ached so bad I felt like my arm needed to be amputated. I reached down for Connor who's wrist and thigh was bit. I pulled him up best I could and followed Harper.

The creatures didn't sound like they were under a spell. They were growling, and if I didn't look back, I would be worried one would attack. But they definitely looked hypnotized. After rolling around in the grass a few times, the animals got back up and watched us. They stood in the same position the whole time but looked as if something was holding them back.

"Hurry!" Harper yelled. He continued playing the instrument which I think is what was stopping them from killing us. He wasn't running anymore though, and from where I am, his face is somewhat blurry. That must be the ''barrier'' he was talking about.

Connor and I trudged along and did not stop until my face went through something that felt awfully like plastic wrap.

xxx

When I woke up, the only thing that assured me I was still alive was the fact that I could here voices. Then again, those voices could just belong to other dead people in the afterlife.

I heard one, it could only belong to a grown man, say something like, "Biological brothers? We don't get a lot of those."

I took my chances and slowly opened my eyes. I definitely did not expect to see a pretty girl towering over me and scowling. My first reaction was not very manly, letting out a high pitched shriek and rolling out of my bed. I landed on the floor and hit my head on the wall.

"Calm down," I heard the girl say. I stayed on the floor behind my bed for a couple of seconds and rubbed the sore spot on my head, grateful that they couldn't see me. I mustered up all my courage and poked my head up.

Standing around the room were three people. Well, one guy wasn't standing. In fact, he was sitting in a wheel chair with a blanket thrown over his lap. He stroked his beard in a thoughtful way. Next to him stood the same girl who was glaring at me. Actually, she still was glaring at me. She had curly blonde hair and grey eyes. She looked shorter than me, so maybe she was Connor's age. I guess in a way she was kind of cute, but I can't say I was gonna try smooth talking her.

Next to her standing against the wall was a tall, blonde kid. He had striking blue eyes and a scar running down the side of his face. Out of the three of them, I found his presence the most calming. Maybe it was because he had a crooked grin on his face like Connor's, or maybe it was because I could see some silly string in the duffle bag by his feet. "How's it going?" He asked like this was completely normal.

I stood up slowly and pointed at each of them. "W-Who are you guys?" I glanced over at the cots next to me. Connor occupied the one to my right while Harper lay curled up in a ball on the one next to him. They were both still unconscious. I wasn't quite sure what happened to Harper the previous night, but he looked just as cut up as Connor if not more so.

The wheelchair guy came closer to me. His eyes were kind of creepy, like he was trying to figure out my life story. "I'm happy to see you can stand my boy. How's that arm?"

I widened my eyes and reached to my shoulder. I could hardly feel any pain. It was wrapped up in a white bandage and blood was seeping through. I clicked my tongue in wonder, and tasted a faint flavor of blue-raspberry slushie. The taste made me sad, reminding me of the times me and Connor would always treat ourselves to them on the last day of school every year. "What is going on?" I glanced at the window next to the blond boy. I considered waking Connor up and making a run for it.

Wheelchair dude came a little closer. I backed up. "What's your name?" He asked me.

I was about to come up with some fake identity (done it before) when the blonde girl crossed her arms and said, "Shouldn't we wait for the other kid to wake up? I don't want to explain more than once."

I placed a hand on my side and smirked. "No problem." Filled with hope that my brother healed as well as me over night, I reached over and pinched his arm. Within a second, he was on the floor too. His head popped up over the bed quicker than I did, and he widened his eyes.

"You can definitely tell they're related." Blondie mumbled and rolled her grey eyes.

Connor shot to his feet. "Look, if this is about all the money Travis and me stole from those street magicians, then it's all a misunderstanding! That guy was cheating people out of their cash-!" Connor must have seen the bewildered look on the wheelchair guy's face because he shut up immediately.

After a short glance with my brother, we decided we had to do the obvious thing. We had to get out of there. I began walking to the door and Connor followed me, wincing when he put pressure on his bad leg. The rag on his wrist didn't look as bloody as mine. "Okay this was fun and all but-!" The tall blonde guy intercepted us and planted himself in front of the door.

He held up his hands and winked. "Okay guys. Let me properly introduce us. That's Chiron, co-directer of Camp Half-Blood. And that's Annabeth." He pointed to the girl who simply gave a half wave. The boy then pointed at himself with his thumb. "And I'm Luke, son of Hermes."

Connor furrowed his eye brows together and I did the same. "Umm.. Okay Mr. Hermes guy. We gotta go." I tried shoving past him but he pushed me back.

"Not so fast." He chuckled.

Chiron backed his chair up and gestured for us to sit. With a gulp, that's what we did. "What are your names? How old are you guys? Are you twins?"

I rolled my eyes and looked at my brother. "Unfortunately he is older. I'm Connor Stoll and I'm nine." Connor mumbled.

I nodded my head and held up my palms. "I'm Travis Stoll. I'm ten."

Chiron continued to stroke his facial hair. "Go on. Tell us what happened."

For the second time, we explained what happened with Stein. Then we went on to what happened when Harper was with our mom and how she sent us to the camp. Lastly, we explained the nasty creatures that led us here.

The three people in the room sat quietly for a second before Annabeth said, "Do you guys know anything about Greek mythology?"

Connor face palmed. "Harper asked us the same question! All I know anything about is that there is a wine dude!"

Luke let out a few laughs and Chiron glanced nervously over his shoulder. "I wouldn't recommend saying that here Connor."

''Yeah,'' Luke said and walked behind Chiron's chair wheeling him away. "Annabeth will explain while I talk to Chiron." Despite Chiron's protests, we were left alone with the scary blonde girl.

She sat down at the foot of Harper's bed. "Look, you guys are demigods. You mentioned your mom right? So guess what? Your dad is an Olympian."

We must have been staring at her like she was crazy, because she rolled her eyes. "I'm not lying. Seriously, have you even met your dad before?"

When neither of us answered, she continued. "Did Harper tell you his secret?" She asked nudging her head at his feet.

"You mean that he's a goat man?" I asked. "Yeah, he did. And it's freakin' creepy!"

She stood up. "Well get used to it. Because those monster? They're never going away."

I crossed my arms. "What do you mean 'never going away'?"

"I mean, the gods are real. Monsters hate them and their children. The only place you're safe is here at Camp Half-Blood."

Connor grabbed my shoulder. His wrist didn't look so bad up close. "Do you know who our father is?"

Annabeth looked as if she was going to say something when Luke and Chiron made a reappearance. I heard Chiron whisper something like ' _we can't make assumptions.'_

Luke walked over and ushered us toward the door. "I'm sure Annabeth explained some stuff to you. Now I'm gonna show you where you're gonna rest your heads for the next few days."

I heard Annabeth mutter something under her breath when Luke stopped us right in front of the door. "Wait, what are your last names again?"

"Stoll." Connor and I said at the same time.

I noticed Luke smirk at Chiron before shoving us out the door.

xxx

Needless to say, the camp looked pretty awesome. And even though I was forced here against my will, I can't say I was disappointed in the slightest. From the porch of this big house, I could see a bunch of cabins and lava rock climbing wall. I grinned at Connor, already seeing all the perfect pranks playing out in my head.

"It's all quite amazing isn't it boys?" Luke held his arms out as he soaked in the sunlight. "Now let me give you the tour." He lead us toward the cabins. He pointed at each one, saying random names really fast, "Athena, Aphrodite, Apollo."

"Any non A-names?" I asked with a smart aleck smile.

Luke rolled his eyes at the comment and pointed at three specific cabins. "You'll never see anyone in those ones. That's the Artemis, Poseidon, and Zeus cabins." He eyes drifted over the Zeus cabin longer than I felt comfortable, but he quickly regained his composure. "To our cabin!"

He led us toward one cabin that had kids hanging around all over it. Some sat in groups on the porch and a couple kids nested in the bushes. Inside, there were sleeping bags and bunks all over. Trash filled the room, and in the far corner were bags of loot. I could always tell when I saw a bag of loot. "So, why are there 800 kids around this specific cabin?"

Luke dodged between a few smaller kids and brought us to a little area in the corner. "You'll see it in a few days when school officially gets out." He chuckled. "But anyway, before the kids are claimed, they stick around with us. Like you guys."

"Okay." Connor said bluntly. "Because we know what being claimed is."

Luke suppressed a smile. "Right sorry. This will all be explained in a little bit. Right now, make yourselves at home. Meet me again at the Big House when you're ready." He walked away but stopped at the door. "Please refrain from stealing from your brothers and sisters okay? We kind of like to team up and steal from the _other_ cabins." With that, he walked out the door.

Connor and I sat on the floor where Luke left us. A couple of the kids in here were giving us funky looks, but for the most part, the cabin was near empty now.

"Travis." Connor looked at me. "I have no idea what just happened."

I shrugged and glanced around. The cabin was completely empty now. "Who cares? I guess were stuck here. I say, we give them a little 'present' showing our appreciation." Despite what Luke said, I leaned under one of the beds and pulled out a random can of spray paint.

Connor did finger guns at me. "I like your style."

We both hopped to our feet and ran for the door. I glanced behind me as I ran down the porch and almost had a heart attack when I felt myself hit another human being. I tripped forward right on top of the person, who was wiggling to get free. "Get off me!" I heard her scream.

I sat up and got a good look at her. She had wavy brown hair pulled back in a ponytail and fiery green eyes. A splash of freckles across her nose and rosy cheeks from too much sun. She had on ratty overalls with her Camp Half-Blood shirt; identical to the ones Annabeth and Luke were wearing. The flower headband and dirt all over her is what caused me to grin. Needless to say, she was _way_ cuter than the ginger girl back home.

"Watch where you're going next time." She huffed and crossed her arms.

My brother stood behind me looking quite amused. That annoyed me, because this cute brunette girl was already getting on my nerves. "Me? You were in front of our cabin!"

She stood up and tried rubbing some dirt off her face. It actually didn't help much, it just caused more dirt to smudge over her cheek. "As if I would stand in front of the Hermes cabin. I was just going to the strawberry fields!"

"Strawberries huh?" It didn't hurt knowing this girl liked it there. We could always set some pranks up there to victimize her.

She nodded her head skeptically and eyed me up and down. She then eyed my brother up and down. "I have never met you guys. I would remember if I had ever seen anyone with such an annoying face before."

"Hey!" Connor frowned and walked closer.

The girl waved her hand with an eye roll. "Who are you guys?"

I pretended to look at my nails and ruffled my hair. "Aw so nice of you to ask. I'm Travis, and this is my kid brother Connor."

The girl adjusted her pink headband and put her hands on her hips. Like she was decidng whether we were telling the truth ot not. "Hmph." I heard her say.

"Wait, aren't you gonna tell us your name?" I found myself asking. She raised a brow at us, and the way her green eyes sparkled in the sunlight made my throat dry. I brushed the feeling off.

"When you have a can of spray paint in your hands? No thanks." She looked like she was going to walk away when I heard a soft voice yelling ''Katie!" She squeezed her eyes shut and froze in place, like she was hoping the girl wouldn't find her. Unfortunately, luck was not on her side, because a tall girl with long black hair and blue eyes came up behind her. She looked about twelve years old or so.

"Katie!" She sang. "Who are your friends?"

I smirked when I heard her name, and she didn't hide her scowl. "They're not my friends! Just an inconsiderate jerk who ran into me. And his brother."

The girl seemed to look between me and Katie a few times before breaking out into a huge smile. "Well, I'm Silena daughter of Aphrodite! Can you excuse me while I talk to Katie here?" She looked at the shorter girl next to her. "It concerns..." She nudged her head toward Connor or me, I couldn't tell which one. Katie didn't seem to like that, because her whole face turned beet red and she shouted "NO!" before running off.

Silena ran after her and I stared after them dumfounded. All I knew was that it was my new goal to prank that girl so badly she threatend to kill me. "I didn't like her." I huffed and turned toward Connor.

"Her name's Katie huh? She looked around our age didn't she Travis?" He was still staring at Katie and Silena who were now walking together across camp and quickly stealing glances at us.

"So what?" I scoffed and began walking toward the Big House, leaving the spray paint on the Hermes porch.

"No reason,'' he said straightfaced and ran up next to me.

We met up with Luke who showed us around. There was so much going on. (Who knew the girls at school were right all along? Horses really can fly!) I was more than grateful when we went to the dining pavilion for dinner because I was exhausted. Everyone sat in separated spots. Some tables had very few kids at them, while some, like ours and the Apollo tables, had a bunch.

Everyone was already eating, so Luke led me and Connor over to the table where we got our food. There was so much, we crammed everything on our trays and shoved some candy into our pockets.

We sat with Luke and another guy about my age; another unclaimed. Him and Luke seemed pretty close. He said his name was Chris Rodriguez, and he had some pretty funny stories to share. I particularly liked the one where he told an Ares girl she was fat and got chased through the camp in his boxers. After about twenty minutes, kids started getting up and tossing some of their left over food into the hearth. For a brief second, I was pretty sure I saw a little girl about twelve years old lounging around in the fire. I glanced at Connor for reassurance, but when I turned back she was gone. I shrugged and looked at Luke. "Why are these crazy people wasting their food?"

Chris Rodriguz chuckled from across the table and stood up with his plate. "Nah, it's an offering to the gods. You just scoop it in and give thanks."

Connor pulled a bag of peanut M&M's from his pocket and smiled sheepishly. I had a couple grapes left over so I picked up my plate. The two of us walked up together and I whispered as I poured it in, "Um, to dad I guess? I dunno." Connor nodded and said, "What Travis said." He dropped the bag in the flame.

We turned around to Luke and Chris who nodded and gave a thumbs up. After everyone did their offerings, we returned back to out tables. I heard a loud stomp and turned toward the front of the pavilion. There _stood_ Chiron. But he wasn't a man in a wheelchair anymore. He was a friggen horse. A white stallion as his bottom half. "Whoa Chiron, what have you been eating?" I said as the other kids started to quiet down.

Most kids, including Luke and Chris, started laughing. I glanced over and noticed Katie glaring at me from her table. There weren't many of them, maybe eight or nine. I stuck my tongue out at her and she scrunched up her little freckled nose.

Chiron held his hand out toward us. "Yes, yes. Some of you met them already. Travis and Connor Stoll, welcome to Camp Half-Blood."

Hushed whispers broke out over the group of people. At first everyone was looking at us but it got pretty loud again. Now hardly anyone was paying us attention. I tried making eye contact with that Katie girl, but she now refused to look at me.

I turned to Connor. "Hey, wanna see what cabins we can rip off before everyone turns in for the night?"

He snapped his fingers at me in response and we hopped out of our seats. I was pretty sure no one was gonna notice us, that was until I heard a loud gasp and everyone was staring at us again. At first I was confused, but then I noticed the glowing sensation over Connor's head. I jumped back in surprise. "What is that!" I pointed up at it.

Connor glanced up and widened his eyes. He looked over at me and pointed above my head. I slowly looked up. It was exactly like the one over Connor. It looked kind of like a staff with two snakes wrapped around it. The staff also seemed like it had wings sprouting out of it.

Everyone was quiet for a moment until the sign disappeared. From the Athena table, I heard Annabeth whisper, "It's the caduceus.." Connor and I stared at each other for eternity before looking at our audience. Most kids didn't look surprised, annoyed even. Katie merely slapped her hand on the table and stormed out of the pavilion.

Luke finally stood up with a grin and held out his hands. "I present to you Travis and Connor Stoll, son's of Hermes. And also, my new brothers.''

Apparently most people were expecting this, because I heard a few people mutter, "Like we need anymore _Hermes_ kids."

"Well awesome!" I shouted and threw my fist in the air.

"Who's Hermes again?" Connor asked through a forced smile.

Luke walked over and gave him a slap on the back. "Our dad. The god of thievery, travel, merchants, messaging, a bunch of other stuff."

"And their last name is _Stoll_? Sounds like some sort of sick joke." A burly looking girl from the Ares table said. She had mangily brown hair and a camouflage vest on. I wonder if that's the girl who Chris called fat.

Though I didn't understand the joke, I flicked a finger in her direction. "Yeah, and you look like one."

The girl lost it and started yelling profanities while her brothers held her back. Other kids nearby laughed hysterically.

I saw a look of pure terror wash over Chiron's face, and he galloped towards us. He was waaaayyy bigger up close. I was tempted to ask if I could ride him like a real pony, but then decided not to because it would be weird. "Why don't you escort them back to your cabin?" Chiron said to Luke.

Luke smiled with something that looked like triumph. "Sure thing Chiron." He nudged his head toward the cabins and we followed behind him. "I knew you guys were Hermes kids. That's what I was trying to convince him this morning when I left you with Annabeth."

"So you knew this whole time?" Connor asked skeptically.

Luke shrugged and the scar on his face glinted in the setting sunlight. "I could just tell. Didn't you notice the hints I kept dropping you? The 'don't steal from your brothers and sisters' things. Or when I asked about your last name?"

Connor blinked his blue eyes in a way he always did when he was confused. "No, I guess we didn't notice."

I glanced up at our cabin where several kids hung around on the porch. My eyes followed over the pathway until my eyes landed on the big green cabin that was covered in grass. In my opinion, it looked stupid. But those kids were like the tree hugging hippies sooo...

Digging in the plants in front of the porch was none other than Miss Flower Princess herself. I'm still not quite sure why I called her 'princess' when she has dirt all over her 24/7. But it seemed to fit her personality.

I glanced over at Luke and gave him a broad smile. "You got any good pranking material?"

xxx

After filling my pockets with the needed supply, I walked out onto the porch. I stared across at the grassy cabin, where Katie was still hunched over her flowers. Even from across the walkway I could here her muttering to herself. I couldn't believe she was about my age, she seemed too mature and determined. Like if I screw up, I just destroy all evidence of doing so.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and Luke swung around so he was in front of me. "Katie Gardner huh?"

I almost laughed at that. In fact, I did. "Everyone is making fun of our last names, for reasons I still have yet to understand, and the little Flower Princess' last name is _Gardner_?"

Luke shrugged. "Yeah, Demeter's a weird goddess. She might have been attracted to Katie's dad _because_ their last name is Gardner."

I played with the material in my pocket. "Not that I care about that stupid girl, but how long has she been here?"

Luke seemed amused by this, and I was a finger away from slapping the sly grin off his face. "Not long. She got here about three months ago. She was claimed about two weeks after her arrival." He clicked his tongue. "Was a good thing too. She hated the Hermes cabin."

I scrunched up my face and rolled my eyes. "Of course she did." I mumbled before walking toward the Demeter cabin.

I slowly walked up behind her, hardly making any sound, when she said, "Don't even think about it."

I stopped in my tracks and frowned. She turned her head. She had chocolaty brown hair matted to her face with sweat. "How did you know I was here?"

She rolled her shovel in between her hands. "Your not very good at talking quietly," she said and pointed at Luke who was still on the porch.

He grinned and waved, retreating to the safety of the cabin. I took a step closer to her and ruffled my hair. "I see you didn't stay for the aftermath party."

She scoffed. "Of course I didn't. I've never liked Hermes kids. Now I know I'm gonna _hate_ them."

I stuck my lip out sarcastically and resisted to reach into my pocket. It was getting darker by the second and I know I had to do act soon. "Awe, is the Flower Princess upset?"

She closed her eyes tightly. For a minute I was afraid she was gonna stab me with her shovel. "Don't call me that."

I shrugged. "Hey, it's not my fault you're racist against Hermes kids."

She narrowed her eyes and her ears reddened. She pointed her garden tool at me. "You wanna know why I hate Hermes kids? It's because they are mean and inconsiderate! They cheat and steal and _never listen!_ "

I directed my gaze at the sky, and just to spite her I said, "Huh, what did you say? I wasn't listening."

She scowled and stomped toward me. Now she had random strands of hair sticking up on her head and she looked kind of funny. I might have laughed if she didn't look like she wanted to kill me.

"Just stay away from my cabin." She growled. We were now standing nose-to-nose. She was on her tippy-toes so we were eye level. I was kind of wondering what she would do if I poked her nose, but right now was my chance to do what I came here for.

"Sure thing," I winked at her before reaching into my pants pocket. I threw two ball shaped objects up the porch and watched them roll inside the open door. A few kids leaned over them to get a better look.

Katie was distracted looking over her shoulder and I took that as my cue to make a run for it. I counted five seconds and watched as a menacing cloud of green took over the Demeter cabin. I almost felt bad for the kids in there when my eyes started watering from the stench. _Almost_.

The last thing I heard before entering my cabin was loud screams, then Katie's sweet, _sweet_ voice yelling at the top of her lungs, "STOLL!"

Everyone was already standing by the window giggling and laughing to the point some people were on the floor. A couple kids came up and gave me a slap on the back. "Thank you, thank you." I bowed as one kid hung upside down from the beams on the ceiling and gave me a thumbs up.

Connor shoved to the front of the crowd and I couldn't help but break out into a huge grin when I saw him. He ruffled his fingers through my hair and held up his other arm. "Yeah, everyone! That's my brother!"

One skinny kid with red hair and a buzz cut scowled and put a hand on his hip. "He's our brother too." He said gesturing to the kids who were by the window. There were few kids still sitting on their sleeping bags, who I assume are unclaimed non-Hermes kids.

Connor looked confused at first then squinted one eye. He looked genuinely annoyed now. "Well yeah," he said and waved a hand at the red haired kid. "But he's _my_ brother- _brother_."

The redhead rolled his eyes and walked away while Connor shot him a smug smile. I, myself, felt quite accomplished. Most people were still looking out the window so that's where I directed my attention. The whole Demeter cabin was standing outside holding their noses while Chiron did a small inspection. Katie stood by an older guy who I assumed was her brother. Her hair was no longer in a ponytail and her overall straps were falling off her shoulders. After a couple minutes Chiron started leading them off toward the Big House.

Luke eventually stood up on a stool in the middle of the cabin and shouted, "HEY EVERYONE!" At once, everyone's head shot in his direction. "I know our new cabin mates are already making good impressions, but we got to get to sleep."

Everyone groaned in sync. Connor cupped his hands around his mouth and whispered "What a buzz kill man."

After a lot of pushing and shoving, everyone was situated in their beds. But absolutely no one was quiet. Which I guess didn't bug Luke all that much because he just sat on his bunk and scowled at the ceiling whispering things under his breath. I was pretty sure he said the words "stupid" and "dad" in the same sentence more than once. I just shrugged it off, though it seemed quite out of character.

Next to Connors and my sleeping bags was a younger looking blonde kid. He had shaggy curly hair, a splash of freckles, and a slight tan. I couldn't see his eyes all that well because they were too busy scanning the page of his book.

He finally looked up at us and smiled a little. Yeah, he had blue eyes. "So I'm sleeping right next to the cool new pranksters. _Yippee_."

I exchange looks with my brother. Well, my biological brother. It's gonna get weird saying that. Anyway, we both nodded our heads. "Sure are." I said.

"I can tell you're not a Hermes kid." Connor muttered.

The blonde kid shrugged. "Nope. I would never steal."

"I would!" I grinned and held up a finger. Blonde kid glared softly at me. "Besides," I continued. "What kind of Hermes kid like to read?"

My brother leaned over and tried to snatch the book, to which the kid narrowed his eyes and pushed him away. Connor frowned. I could tell he was just trying to figure out what book it was, in case it was worth something and we could steal it later.

"Come on man," I said. "We just wanna know what book it is."

Blondie shrugged and glanced at the cover. "I'm actually not sure. I'm having a hard time because of my dyslexia. It's not in Ancient Greek."

"All demigods have dyslexia? Can they all read Ancient Greek?" Connor asked.

He nodded.

"How long have you been here kid?" I crossed my arms. This kid sure acted like he knew a lot even though he looked like he was seven.

"Three days. You learn a lot in three days."

Connor lay back onto his pillow and stifle a yawn. "We've been here all day and I haven't seen you once."

Blondie shrugged again. "I like to hang out by the infirmary. It's cool over there."

My curly haired doppelganger and me exchanged looks like _this kid is absolutely crazy_. "You are one weird kid." I said.

"Will." He nodded and closed his book.

"What?"

"Will. That's my name."

"Well, Will," _if that's your real name_ , I resisted to say. "How old are you?"

He looked at me kind of funny. I usually like to get to know my victims, so I know what to use against them. (I couldn't wait to find out what Annabeth's is, that girl was bossy!) Anyways, since this Will guy obviously wasn't a Hermes kid I _had_ to prank him.

"I am seven. I'll be eight on June 20th." He curled up with his arm under his pillow. The cabin was gradually getting quieter.

"Valuable information." Connor nodded.

Will still had his eyebrows knit together in suspicion,though they looked quite droopy. Luke began talking before he had a chance to try. "Kay everybody! Lights out! Seriously Beauther? Could you get off the ceiling? Y'all better get to sleep or I'll feed ya to the harpies."

I heard some huffs of frustration, some chuckles, but mostly everyone started to close their eyes. I glanced at Will who was already silently snoring.

I heard a few more hushes and whispers but then someone turned off the last lamp and it was pitch black in here. The only noise was the crickets outside. I leaned over toward Connor who lay on his back, eyes slightly open. He was tired, I knew that. But he didn't want to go to sleep. I also knew that.

After all, it's only been the two of us for nine years. Where did all this come from? I know for a fact, Connor and I will have a blast here. Why wouldn't we? So many people to prank! And if what Annabeth said was true, we would be stuck here. My only concern, would we ever be aloud to see our mother again? And if we could, would she want to see us? Everything was just so complicated.

I placed my hand over my brother's and he turned toward me. We met eyes for a second. After he smiled he blinked and kept his eyes close, his breathing falling into a steady pattern.

I, myself, stared at the ceiling. I thought all the people I met today. Chiron, Luke, Annabeth, Katie, Silena, Chris, Will, some creepy red haired kid. That was a lot in one day. Before I could think about anything else, I fell asleep.

xxx

I was awoken by my kid brother pouring a cup of water on my head. I sat up instantly and almost punched his face in the process. "What are you doing?"

He grinned, shrugged, and threw the plastic cup over his shoulder. It hit another kid, but Connor didn't seem to care. "Come on, I guess we have some daily activities to do? I dunno, lets go."

We followed a group outside and the two of us stood next to that Will kid. Considering he was seven years old, he was pretty tall. He was only slightly shorter than Connor.

Will turned to us and waved. I was gonna come up with some sarcastic comment about how his converse were untied, but Connor nudged me in the rib.

"Hey man!" I scolded and shoved him away.

He furrowed his eyebrows together and grabbed my shoulders. He pointed toward the lava wall where I saw Harper, goat legs and all, standing and waving us over. We looked at Will who shrugged and the two of us ran over to greet him.

What I didn't expect was Harper reaching over and giving us a hug. I immediately pushed him off. "Dude what's your deal?"

Harper wiped a tear off his cheek. "I'm heading back out into the field."

Connor looked up at the sky and put a hand to his chin. "You mean a grass field? Don't goats like grass?"

Harper clapped his hoofs together. Gosh was that weird. "No Connor! I'm going to search for more demigods! I heard about two twin brothers in Kansas! Can you believe that? More biological brothers! I heard that these guys are a bit sluggish! Must be Dionysus kids!" He laughed at first but then clasped two hands over his mouth. "Oh dang! I hope Mr. D didn't hear that!"

Next to me, Connor face palmed. I'm pretty sure this is the dorky Harper Connor knew through out the school year. I craved the taste of blue-raspberry slushie at the thought of school. Today would have been the last day.

"Anyways guys, I wanted to say goodbye! I'll miss you! We make a great team."

"I literally just met you." I pointed out.

"Yeah," Connor added. "And you spent most of the time yelling and annoying us."

Harper didn't seem to remember that and widened his eyes. "Well, I got to go. I'll see you guys, hopefully I make it back."

He turned to a big van where a surfer looking blonde dude sat in the drivers seat. He had eyes all over his body and it was actually kind of cool. Before Harper could hop inside, Connor caught his hand. "Harper wait." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a green piece of candy. He placed it in Harper's hand. "Good luck dude."

Harper smiled. "I knew we were friends all year! No matter how many times you filled my pencil case with Styrofoam!"

Connor rolled his eyes and gestured toward the van. Before driving away I could hear Harper laugh, "I love grass flavored candy!"

As the van disappeared from our view I said "You seriously had grass candy?"

Connor faked a laugh. "Nah that was real candy. I wish I could see the look on his face when he realizes it doesn't taste like dirt!"

I grinned at him and we walked back toward the group. Connor told me we had sword practice with Luke first, so that's where we headed.

I don't mind making a scene, so when Connor and I walked into the room and everyone was already there staring at us, I didn't mind so much.

Luke was standing in the middle of the room. "Well you two can be partners. Everyone else already has partners."

I knuckle punched Connor. Like we would partner up with anyone else. We got in our spots and after being handed swords, Luke started directing. This sword did not fit in my hand nearly as well as my lighter one did. But I didn't complain. I glanced around the room, considering we weren't really hurting each other and Connor really sucked at this anyway.

There weren't that many people and I was quite surprised when I caught sight of a flowery headband. This didn't seem like her thing. She was partnered up with that Will kid, and that explained why they were here. Neither of them were that good, and if their lives were in danger they would most likely die. Katie could probably do more damage with her shovel and Will with his book.

I was broke from my thoughts when I felt a sting on my arm. I immediately flinched and looked to the spot that hurt. There wasn't any blood, just a little cut. I glared at Connor who widened his eyes and held his arms up in defense. "Sorry man! I thought you were gonna block it!"

I glared at him and dropped my sword. I leaned over and punched him in the arm. I'll admit, it was harder than it had to be. He didn't seem to like that because he did the exact same thing. And before you knew it, we were in a complete brawl on the floor while Luke and some random kid pulled us off each other.

My brother and I glared at each other from across the room while everyone stared at us. Luke stepped in between. "Okay, well the session is over. Maybe it's best for the two of you to go to separate activities next."

The scowl on our faces dropped. "What?" I said. I did everything with Connor, even when we wanted to tear each others heads off.

Connor shook the other kids hand off of him. "We'll be good."

Luke shrugged. "I dunno guys, I think we should try it. Travis, you'll go to archery next. Watson, take Connor to the lake for canoeing ."

I shared one last uncomfortable glance at Connor who scrunched his face up as he was dragged away with Watson. I turned around where Will and Katie were both standing. There were about the same height.

"We have archery," Will said. "You can walk with us if you want."

I quickly thought about what I might have in my pockets to use to my advantage, and was highly disappointed when I realized I didn't have anything. "Sure." I said and followed them.

Katie rolled her eyes. "You know what you did was very immature."

I put my hands in my pockets. "You'll have to be more specific. I do a lot of immature things."

"Starting a fight with your brother in the middle of practice! And because he accidentally cut you? That's so lame!"

I smirked. "Aww you were watching me?"

Katie's ears reddened and her scowl hardened. Will stifled a laugh. "No!"

Will coughed into his hand. "Yes."

She frowned and hit his arm.

We arrived at archery within a few seconds and they had ranges set up for different age groups. Will headed over with the younger kids and Katie went with the slightly older kids. I was about to follow her when I noticed Annabeth. Fortunately, she was in the direction I needed to go. I walked up next to her. "Hi Miss Know-it-all."

She glared daggers at me. No sense of humor. Check. "What do you want?"

I shrugged. "Just dropping by to say hello."

Her glared softened but she raised an eyebrow. I cursed in my head remembering I still didn't have anything to prank her with. "Where's Connor?"

I shrugged. "Canoeing or something."

We stood quiet for a moment and I glanced over at the people holding bows. Will was up.

I pointed at him and asked a question that had been in the back of my mind. "What do you think about that kid?"

Annabeth glanced at where I was pointing. "Will Solace?" We watched as he tried to line the arrow up on the bow. He was having a difficult time, but he was determined, I'll give him that. I would have just rigged the bow and ask the professional guy to show me what to do as an example. Then watch him fail, and everyone would think he was a loser too.

Will had one eye closed and his tongue sticking out in frustration. He finally let the string go and the arrow went flying. It hit the target, on the very last ring. "Alright Will!" The blonde kid in front of him said, the one directing him.

Will tried for a smile but anyone could see the disappointment on his face. "Thanks Lee." He said before handing the bow over.

"I dunno." Annabeth said. It was weird that I was older than her. She seemed so much more mature. "I was thinking he was an Apollo kid but..." She didn't have to finish the sentence about how he sucked at archery. "Maybe Athena? I don't know how smart he is."

We both watch as Will Solace walked away at a face pace. I guess he was going at too fast a pace because he tripped over his untied shoe lace and landed on his face.

Now it was pretty darn funny, and I knew that if Connor was there I wouldn't be the only one laughing.

Annabeth sent a glare my way but it didn't seem to bother Will. Before anyone could run to his aid, he jumped up onto his feet. He quickly glanced at his scraped leg. His eyes widened. "I need some hydrogen peroxide and a band aid! STAT!" He screamed before taking off in the direction of the infirmary.

Annabeth looked amused. "And that's his Apollo showing again."

I wasn't quite sure what that meant. After being showed around the day before, I learned that Apollo had something to do with the sun and fought with a bow. I don't know how band-aids related but I shrugged it off. I turned back toward the group when I noticed movement in the grass. I squatted down for a better look. "Hey look a spider."

Annabeth's eyes grew the size of dinner plates. "What!?" She shrieked before running in the opposite direction.

I smile to myself. I just got some valuable information.

Everyone regrouped and I noticed Katie wasn't here anymore. I didn't notice her sneak off, but I was really hoping she didn't run off to see if Will was okay. Not that I cared. It's just he is three years younger, it would be weird!

I finally took my turn and I sucked almost as bad as I did at sword fighting. "The target Travis! Not Chiron!" Lee Fletcher scolded.

After getting out of there I decided to go search the camp for my brother. I stopped at the Hermes cabin and picked up a few water balloons in case I felt mischievous.

In fact, I noticed that burly Ares girl hanging around. I found out her name was Clarisse. So I did what was proper and threw three at her. I jumped in a big bush before she could do anything. She screamed some funny curse words and I could see steam coming out of her ears. She stormed off in the direction she thought I went.

After I couldn't find him, I considered going back to my cabin. Of course that's when I felt another human being jump onto my back and nearly send me into a tree. I didn't even have to look. "Connor!"

He hopped off and held up a hand. "Where you been buddy?" It was like we didn't even almost kill each other this morning.

"Where have _you_ been?"

He turned on his heel and looked toward the infirmary. We could hardly see the people around it, it was that far. "Oh ya know. Just.. Pranking Katie Gardner."

Cue the screaming. Before I even had a chance to congratulate Connor's good deed, Katie was storming toward us yelling, "STOLL!" I have a feeling that was going to become a normal thing.

She stood in front of us, strawberry yogurt dripping down her face and in her hair.

"I dunno." I said to Connor. "I think it's a good look for her."

Connor held his hands behind his back and nodded "Oh yes."

I wiped a bit off her. "It helps cover up your ugly face."

She fisted her hands and yogurt nearly shot out of her ears. "My ugly face?! It's you two with the ugly faces!"

"Yeah well were not the ones with yogurt on us!"

She glared daggers at me. And in a way, she looked more threatening than Annabeth. She looked at Connor. "Connor," then she turned to me. "And Travis Stoll. I am going to kill you."

I was half surprise by the fact she could tell us apart; most people can't (though I am actually taller than him). And I was also half surprise how quickly I set my goal. She actually wanted to kill us.

"Yeah right," I chuckled and propped my arm onto Connor's shoulder. "Like you could kill us."

In response, the hippy girl in front of me did some freakin' weird, voodoo hand gesture and I felt something wrap around my feet. Suddenly, I was pressed up against Connor,something was wrapped around us binding us together, and I was hanging upside down.

"Get down from that!" She smirked at the bottom of the tree. That stupid flower girl just wrapped us up in vines and is gonna leave us here to dangle.

"Wait, hold up!" Connor called trying to wiggle his arms free.

But Katie Gardner was already skipping away like she won the lottery or something.

I kicked against my brother who kicked me right back. "How can a girl contain so much evil!?"

Connor made a sound like a laugh or cough, it was so gross I couldn't even tell. "I don't know! And they call her a-!" He was interrupted by a serenade of gasps. We turned our heads as best as we could toward the sound. A big group of campers were gathered around the infirmary and there was a big golden glow over someone's head, though I wasn't sure who's.

"Connor," I turned my head so our cheeks were pressed together. "We gotta get outta here. Ya know, without causing attention. No one can see us like this."

"Right," Connor agreed.

So that's what we did. After ten failed plans, desperate calls for helps, and thirty games of _never have I ever_ , we were free. And not in a way that makes me look like some Macho Man. Eventually, a cute girl with a greenish tinted skin color popped out of the tree and said she saw the whole thing. She laughed in our face and got us down.

If anyone asks, I busted out my trusty pocket knife.

We arrived back at camp, and no one seemed especially thrilled to see us. I have no clue how no one noticed our absence, but whatever I guess.

Connor caught sight of Chris by the lake, so that's where he ran off to. Luke stood with Annabeth outside the cabins looking in their respective notebooks. I retired to my cabin, where I found Will Solace all alone. I grabbed the newest can of spray paint and held it up. "What are you doing?!"

Will turned to me with a stack of books in his arms. "Oh hey! Did ya...why are you pointing spray paint at me?"

I slowly dropped the can and narrowed my eyes. "What you doing?"

Will shot me a sunny grin and it caused me to relax a little. "I got claimed! Didn't you hear! I'm an Apollo kid!"

I walked up next to him. "That's great. I have no idea that means, but great."

He must have heard the indifference in my voice because he put a hand on my shoulder. "Listen, I know what this is about. You were glaring at me ever since sword practice."

I widened my eyes. Why was I not aware of this.

"Katie and me are just friends. She sat by me at the campfire the other night."

I scowled at him and pulled an extra, unfilled water balloon out of my pocket and slapped him with it.

He laughed but then his face took a stern pose. "But seriously." After a few moments, his face softened and he sighed. "Besides, I got my eye on someone else." He glanced longingly out the window where Luke now stood alone, his eyes still scanning the notebook.

I squinted. "What?!"

Will shrugged and flashed me a toothy grin. "See ya Travis. Hopefully not that often though!" He called over his shoulder as he kicked opened the screen door and migrated to the Apollo cabin.

I was now genuinely confused.

xxx

After Connor and I bugged the showers so they sprayed orange juice, and replaced all the straws with pixie sticks, I realized how quiet it was. Actually it was super loud, but one specific voice was not yelling, _"STOLL!_ "

I thought it would be best if I tried to make things better between the two of us. Well, as good as I can get at least. So I stopped at the kitchen, and went the only place I figured she might be.

And of course I found her at the strawberry fields. Her yogurt-y hair draped over shoulder, a dirt smudge covering the scar on her right cheek. She sat alone with a basket of strawberries in front of her, and I couldn't think of bringing anything more appropriate than what I did.

I silently sat down next to her and she visibly flinched. "Calm girl. I'm not the who threatened to kill you."

She sighed and crossed her arms, refusing to look at me. "I have a feeling we're are going to hate each other a lot."

I grinned and used my hands to support me as I sat back. "Yeah. And I looked forward to every bit of it."

The girl next to me looked quite agitated. I shrugged and picked up the cup I brought. "Sugar?"

She raised a brow at me in suspicion. "Relax!" I assured her. "It's real sugar! See?" I dipped my finger in and licked it.

She looked hesitant but dipped a strawberry in. Before she took a bite, she looked me straight in the eyes and said, "If this is a prank, I will kill you." She lifted the berry toward her mouth.

What she didn't know was that it was salt.

* * *

 **My goodness this story took forever to write! But I had a strange urge to write a Travis and Connor story. (It had nothing to do with the fact that Travis went to college and left Connor all alone.. *Cries*...)**

 **I know I should be working on Help Me Hold the World (For peeps who don't know me, go read it! It's centered around all the main couples! Mostly Solangelo tho!) But this had to be done. (And no, i did not just add this paragraph in to advertise my other story...)**

 **Anyways, I know it's crazy long and kind of dumb but... I threw in a lot of familiar characters, tho I am not exactly sure who would be there and who wouldn't. (The reference to Pollux and Castor tho!)**

 **So I know it's weird how Annabeth is younger than Travis, but that's canon in the books. I kind of just assume Connor is the same age as Percy and Annabeth. Will is also canonically two years younger than Annabeth so it was kind of weird to write him as a little kid but it was fun! (I headcanon that Will was at Camp Half-Blood for a long time {maybe not this long tho but I wanted him in the story so bad} you can fight me about it!)**

 **Tratie is real and I'm not exactly sure what Connor meant when he said something about her being around their age. You can decide whether he had a little crush on her or if he was shipping his brother with her heh...**

 **The Connor/Travis brother scenes were my fav to write.**

 **Chris calling Clarisse fat when they were younger seems realistic to me. Like Tratie, they probably got on each others nerves but secretly dig each other. She was probably heart broken when she found out he was a traitor. Then after Clarisse nursed him back to health after the Labrynth they could no longer hide their true feelings! 3 3**

 **Yeah Harper is my OC and I love him. Yeah, I know Harper is a more common girl name but it can also be a boy name (i googled it calm down) which is why I think it was a perfect name for him. I like to think Harper survived and is friends with Grover or something. Maybe he's helping him deal with the drought in California.**

 **Sorry if some things don't line up and that the monsters are not really from Greek Mythology. (I was too lazy to research) Also, I know Katie Gardner is hardly in the books but I am obviously one of many people who ship her with Travis anyway.**

 **Oh yeah. I thought it would be funny if Will had a little boy crush on Luke like Nico did on Percy. (He's gay, why wouldn't he have a crush on Luke? I probably would too!) But alas, Solangelo belongs together 3 3**

 **Sorry this is hella long. Please fav and review.**

 **~MyLifeIsALie**


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